Exercise for ministerial reshuffle begins

June 27, 2011 03:28 pm | Updated November 17, 2021 01:19 am IST - New Delhi

Ahead of the promised “expansive changes” in his Council of Ministers, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi are engaged in a careful exercise to assess the performance of ministers, their suitability in current portfolios, and gaps in caste and regional representation. The fate of Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran continues to hang in the balance.

With clear vacancies in the Raj Bhavans of Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh and some incumbents keen on a shift — including back into active politics — the reshuffle exercise is likely to involve governors too, party and government sources said.

Even as speculation rages on the timing and enormity of the changes, Congress sources said the exercise will also be segued with filling the blanks in the party organisation, while keeping an eye on the crucial Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab due next year.

The Congress hopes a dramatic change in the Council of Ministers will energise its workers and send out a message that it means business.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.